Entirely unfamiliar, yet completely true
by ValyrianGirl
Summary: A one-shot of my favorite pair, Arya and Gendry. Takes place following the war against the White Walker's. Four Stark's are present at Winterfell...and so is one blacksmith. (I don't own any characters...all owned by the amazing GRRM)


_**A/N: So this is a one shot, my first ever one shot...so I apologize if it's shit! Please comment and let me know what you think! I hope to write more one shots in the future (probably Arya/Gendry, as I love them so much), so I would appreciate and suggestions, or thoughts on where I can improve!**_

 _ **Also, just if anyone is interested, I was listening to 'Candles' by Daughter, and 'Lost at Sea' by Woodlock while writing this...great songs :)**_

* * *

Arya didn't quite know where this came from. This all of the sudden feeling. Maybe is was because her sister kept teasing her that the boy with coal-black hair and striking blue eyes was always looking at her. Arya had always just told her to leave it alone, and would just shrug her shoulders at the whole situation, _we are just friends_ , Arya always said to herself.

But lately, she could feel that his stares were more intense, and for once, she didn't tease him about it. Instead, she smiled about it. Like some stupid girl in those fairy tale songs Sansa was always talking about. No. She would not be one of those girls, she hated those girls! But she still couldn't shake the feeling that things were changing between her and Gendry. No, not changing, evolving. They had always been friends, but as they grew, so did their relationship. And Arya definitely couldn't help but notice his protectiveness over her, and she him.

It had all started when he came staggering into the dining hall at Winterfell, demanding to see her. Her eyes met his, he had not changed much, other than the fact that he seemed slightly larger than before, more muscles. But then again, maybe Arya had never really looked at him properly when they were traveling. Changes or no changes, Arya was pissed, _how dare he come here after deciding to leave all those years ago!_ He had chosen to remain with the Brotherhood, all the while she was getting kidnapped by the Hound, and then found herself going to Braavos, where she remained for 4 years. She had returned to Westeros when she finished her training, and quickly reunited with the remaining members of her family, including Sansa, Rickon and Bran, who was now the King of the North.

When she had returned, she joined her family's men, and rallied to fight the White Walker's; an impossible task if not for Bran, and the Queen's dragons. It was only right after the battle, that the dragon Queen named Bran the King of the North. It was well known across Westeros of the Stark victory, and who was involved, which just added to Arya's rage towards Gendry, standing before her, after knowing she had returned home some time ago.

He had begged for her forgiveness, in which Arya sped forward and shoved him to the ground before storming out of the room. Bran and Sansa, courteous as they were, could not turn down a smith, nor did they want to turn away someone who had known Arya, so they let him stay in the forge. He quickly settled in, and everyone seemed to like him, much to Arya's dismay. She ignored him at all costs, but would always feel his gaze on her when she was sparring with the men. She always won, even though the feel of his gaze made her uneasy.

One day, she had been heading to the Godswood, sword in hand, and Nymeria treading before her, when she encountered him seated beneath the Heart Tree, "What are you doing here?"

Gendry smiled at her, "Came to talk to you obviously."

Arya glared at him, and then turned abruptly to walk back out of the Godswood calling behind her, "Nymeria, come."

When she didn't feel Nymeria's presence beside her, Arya turned and found her direwolf cuddling up to Gendry, whining and attempting to lick Gendry's hand. Gendry had looked stunned at first, and then began gently stroking Nymeria, laughing, "I think she likes me."

Arya was confused at the scene before her, as Nymeria did not do well with other people. She rolled her eyes, and decided to go get Nymeria. When Nymeria refused to go with Arya, Arya huffed and sat down, staring intensely at Gendry, waiting for him to say something. He caught on, and began explaining to her, how he had spent their time apart. Apparently he had seen battle as well, and had been left in charge of young orphans who had no other place to go. The whole time he had spoken, he sounded sad. When he was finished, they just sat there in pondering silence. After some time had passed, he said that he had looked for her, had desperately tried to find her when she first disappeared. Arya looked at him, meeting his distraught and miserable gaze, and just said, "Okay."

He raised a brow, "Okay?"

Arya rolled her eyes at, "Yes, okay, stupid" he smiled, "I won't ignore you anymore."

His smile grew, "Okay."

* * *

Gendry had now been at Winterfell for over a year, and in that time, they had become great friends again. Much to her sister's dismay, Arya would constantly find herself in the forge, sitting in silence, watching as Gendry pounded away the steel before him. People began talking about them, but Arya just brushed them off. Gendry on the other hand would blush whenever she brought it up, and tell her that she shouldn't come and visit him so often. She would glare at him and then storm off, only to return the next day to tell him that she didn't care what people said.

For once, Gendry rolled his eyes at her, reminding her of how inappropriate it was for a princess to be seen with a lowborn Bastard. Again, she would tell him that she didn't care. And really, she didn't. Jon was a bastard, and he had always been her favorite brother. And besides, Bran didn't seem to care what either of his sisters did, especially when Arya made it clear that she would choose her own path. Sansa did care though, and would nag Arya about it constantly. Arya would just call her stupid, and then try to ignore her.

There were a few instances though, where Sansa didn't seem to mind having Gendry around. Times when Arya would forget herself. Something would, by happenstance, place her into the state of being No One, a state well known to her. She would lash out at her family, and on occasion would run away. At these times, Sansa would call on Gendry, who was always able to find her, and calm her down. Curious, Sansa had asked him once, "How do you do it?"

Turning his gaze away from the sleeping Arya and looking at Sansa, he said, "I just talk to her, telling her stories of the past, our past" he sighed as he gazed lovingly back at Arya, "Eventually I say something that makes her call me stupid" he laughed, "And her eyes turn back from the stormy blackness, and she seems normal."

It hadn't always been such an easy task, as Gendry often got injured in the process of trying to calm down an unfamiliar Arya, with weapons in her hand. He refused to fight her, which would have gotten him killed if not for Nymeria, who would protect him. Arya's wolf protecting Gendry, would get her confused, confused enough to drop her weapons and crumble to the floor, legs drawn in towards her chest, whispering, "No one. I am No One."

Nymeria would whimper, and lay beside Arya, offering comfort. After allowing Arya time to calm down, Gendry would gently say, "You're not No One. You're Arya Stark." She would finally look at him then, eyes still black, but looking misunderstood. At this, Gendry would begin talking to her, telling her stories.

* * *

Arya could never quite remember what happened when she slipped into being No One. When she would ask Gendry how he got her back to normal, he would just shrug his shoulders. As time went on, Arya began to open up to Gendry, telling her of her time at the House of Black and White, what she had learned. She had been scared that he would be disgusted. He wasn't though, he just listened, nodded and gave her a smile when she had finished. Opening up to Gendry had somehow caused those blanks in Arya's memory, where she became No One, to become less frequent, so much so that Sansa was very suspicious at what was really happening between them.

Over time, as Sansa became more and more aware of how the blacksmith looked at Arya, she would bring it up to her sister, in which Arya would ignore her, while secretly wondering what was really going on between them. He was her only true friend, not counting her family, and Arya knew that she never wished to be parted from him. And even though Sansa thought her sister blind when it came to handsome men, Arya knew that Gendry was handsome, that he was strong.

So one night, after everyone had gone to sleep, and she was sick of lying awake, pondering their evolving relationship, Arya creeped her way out of Winterfell, and made her way over to the forge. The bright fire was still ablaze when Arya entered, but she could tell that it was dying down. She quietly made her way to the back room, where he slept, expecting him to be fast asleep, but instead finding him sitting on his small cot, untying his boots. Arya cleared her throat, and Gendry jumped so far off the cot that Arya laughed, "Arya!? What are you doing here?"

She kept laughing as she sat down on the cot, "I came to see you stupid."

He quickly stood and ran his fingers through his hair, "But you shouldn't be here. Gods Arya, it's the middle of the night."

Ignoring him, she asked, "Gendry, why did you never take a wife?" she looked up at him, "All this time, you could have a few children by now."

Gendry looked at her, confused, "I-I don't know Arya, there was always other things going on."

"And now?" she raised her brow at him, "I see how the girls look at you."

Gendry had a stupid look on his face as he began blushing. After a tense moment, Gendry narrowed his eyes at her, "And what do you care about the doings of a lowborn bastard."

Arya sighed, "You are not a lowborn bastard to me, and you know it" she paused, "You are my friend, and I just want to know why."

Gendry looked at her then, with an expression she did not recognize, and did not say anything. It was then that Arya's stomach began filling with this feeling again. This feeling of want, a feeling of which completely confused her, as it was entirely unfamiliar. Without thinking, Arya stood from the cot and moved towards him. He didn't say anything, but she heard him as he sucked in a breath, when she was just inches from him. In an instant, they were kissing. Arya didn't even know who had initiated it, but it was happening nonetheless, and Arya _liked_ it.

Arya had kissed men before, done some unspeakable things with them, such things sometimes required for her assignments at the House of Black and White in order to lure men. But she had never enjoyed it, until now. She wrapped her arms around his neck, as he squeezed her waist and lifted her up in his arms, deepening the kiss. When Arya tried to push her tongue through his lips, he seemed to come to the realization of what they were doing. He froze, and broke their kiss before slowly setting her feet on the ground and untangling his arms form her sides.

She frowned at him, dropping her arms as well, "Why did you stop?"

Gendry, breathing heavily said, "We can't do this Arya! I'm just a bastard, and you're a Lady" he threw his hands up in the air, bewildered, "Not just a Lady, a princess!"

"You think I care about some stupid title?" she glared at him, "Titles mean nothing to me. I have never been, nor will I ever be a Lady, let alone a princess."

"You may not care Arya, but everyone else does." He looked up at the ceiling, looking for some sort of solace, when he found none, he gazed back to her, "What would your family say?"

Arya rolled her eyes, "Bran knows he has no control over me, nor does he wish to. Too much has happened from this war, no one goes by what used to be 'right' anymore" she paused, "And Sansa seems to like you."

He huffed, "I don't think she will after this."

Arya reached out and grabbed his hand, rubbing her thumb along his calloused palm, "What does it matter? It's our life, not hers."

Gendry dropped his gaze, to where she held his hand, and just watched as she rubbed his arm, showing him affection that he never thought her capable of. After what seemed like a lifetime, she spoke again, "Why have you never taken one of those silly girls to be your wife Gendry?"

He lifted his head to meet her gaze desperately and whispered, "None of them were you."

Arya softly smiled at him as she lowered herself down on the cot, pulling Gendry with her. She laid her head back on the pillow, with Gendry leaning on top of her. Smiling, he said, "You really aren't a lady are you?"

"Shut up stupid." She replied, as she grabbed his tunic in her hands, pulling his face towards hers, and was kissing him. As she deepened the kiss, and went to move her tongue into his mouth, he let her this time, groaning as she did it. Her hands were moving all over his muscled torso, before moving to where his tunic was tucked into his breeches. Before he could protest, Arya grabbed hold of his tunic and pulled it up to his neck. She then broke their kiss and watched the muscles in his arms as he sat up and lifted the tunic above his head and threw it on the floor. _He is very muscled indeed_ , she thought, with a wicked grin appearing on her face.

Gendry, who was looking at her strangely, said, "What?"

She stared at him intensely as she sat up, not answering, but instead, tugging at her own tunic before pulling it over her head. He widened his eyes, as they lowered, scanning her body. She let out a laugh as he blushed furiously. He then reached a hand out and stroked her face, "Are you sure about this?" she nodded, "Have you ever done this before?"

Arya felt herself start to blush. She closed her eyes for a brief moment, and then looked at his blue eyes, eyes filled with love and lust, "Almost. When I was No One."

He nodded, about to say something else, before being interrupted by her kisses. She pulled him back down to the pillow with her, and raked her hands down the centre of his back. Gendry grunted as he squeezed her to him. His hands began wondering then too, all around her torso, before settling on her breast. She moaned as he rubbed her gently. Not knowing when it had happened, Gendry realized that his breeches were undone, and Arya was attempting to push them down with her little arms rubbing against him, all the while sucking on his neck.

With all the restraint he could muster, he lifted his head, stopping her from sucking on his neck, something that had made his head very foggy, and looked into her lust-filled eyes, "Are you absolutely sure Arya? I don't want to ruin you."

Catching her breath, she placed a hand on his cheek, stroking his face, "You could never ruin me Gendry." She smiled so sweetly at him then, a look in her eyes that spoke of love. A look that Gendry knew was mirrored on his face. And with one last sweet, soft kiss, Arya made quick work of her breeches and small clothes, as did Gendry. And soon he entered her.

When they had both reached their end, Gendry collapsed beside her, tightening his arms around her waist as she pushed back into his warmth. He fell asleep instantly, whispering loving words in her ear. Arya smirked at the loving words he spoke to her, trying to deny the stupid things only said in fairy tales, but knowing that the words he spoke were true, and that maybe, just maybe, she felt them too. She fell asleep in Gendry's embrace, smiling, and wondering how on earth girls could be ruined by soft kisses and loving words.

* * *

 _ **So that's it...my first one shot! I hope you enjoyed it!**_


End file.
